Dear Ms. Franzoi, On May 9 someone wrote asking why you advise people with HIV to go to certain companies for life insurance coverage. The person writing further states these companies don't offer life insurance coverage to anyone with HIV. What people are not understanding is their particular illness, whether it's HIV, Hepatitis C, Cancer, etc...is immaterial. If a person calls and asks for HIV life insurance coverage they will be told there is no such thing and that is true. An insurance company will not offer life policies for specific diseases and conditions. You are correct in referring people to Mutual of Omaha, Physician's Mutual, and New York Life through AARP. These three companies offer Guaranteed Issue Life Insurance, meaning the policy is guaranteed to be issued to the person applying for it. There is no medical underwriting and the only qualifying criteria is age, 45-80 depending on the company. Anyone applying for this type of coverage is considered to be at high risk of mortality and, of course, the rates of premium for this coverage are much higher than a healthier person would pay. So anyone with HIV inquiring about this insurance policy must realize their illness has no bearing whatsoever on qualifying for the plan. I hope this clears the air and you can move on to other topics.

Response from Ms. Franzoi

Thank you. In addition, I just learned that Gerber Life will offer policies for $3,000, $5,000 or $7,000 to individuals between the ages of 50 and 75 on a guaranteed issue basis.

This forum is designed for educational purposes only, and experts are not rendering medical, mental health, legal or other professional advice or services. If you have or suspect you may have a medical, mental health, legal or other problem that requires advice, consult your own caregiver, attorney or other qualified professional.

Experts appearing on this page are independent and are solely responsible for editing and fact-checking their material. Neither TheBody.com nor any advertiser is the publisher or speaker of posted visitors' questions or the experts' material.

The Body is a service of Remedy Health Media, LLC, 750 3rd Avenue, 6th Floor, New York, NY 10017. The Body and its logos are trademarks of Remedy Health Media, LLC, and its subsidiaries, which owns the copyright of The Body's homepage, topic pages, page designs and HTML code. General Disclaimer: The Body is designed for educational purposes only and is not engaged in rendering medical advice or professional services. The information provided through The Body should not be used for diagnosing or treating a health problem or a disease. It is not a substitute for professional care. If you have or suspect you may have a health problem, consult your health care provider.